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"[A] page turning mystery . . . it provides a wholly satisfying whodunit as well as a good reason to look up the other two [books in the series] . . . Griffiths's Galloway is a likable and alluring character.”—Associated Press

Just back from maternity leave, forensic archeologist Ruth is finding it hard to juggle motherhood and work when she is called in to investigate human bones that have surfaced on a remote Norfolk beach. The presence of DCI Harry Nelson, the married father of her daughter, does not help. The bones, six men with their arms bound, turn out date back to World War II, a desperate time on this stretch of coastland.

Home Guard veteran Archie Whitcliffe reveals the existence of a secret the old soldiers have vowed to protect with their lives. But then Archie is killed and a German journalist arrives, asking questions about Operation Lucifer, a plan to stop a German invasion, and a possible British war crime. What was Operation Lucifer? And who is prepared to kill to keep its secret?

This month's Book With Buzz: "Little Fires Everywhere" by Celeste Ng
From the bestselling author of Everything I Never Told You, a riveting novel that traces the intertwined fates of the picture - perfect Richardson family and the enigmatic mother and daughter who upend their lives. See more

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Editorial Reviews

This is the third in the quirky, compelling series starring British forensic archaeologist Ruth Galloway, the first of which, The Crossing Places (2009), won the Mary Higgins Clark Award. A group of archaeologists are surveying northeast Norfolk beaches for evidence of coastal erosion. Incidentally, the team has discovered a Paleolithic ax, a Roman bracelet, and shipwrecks. At Broughton Sea’s End, they discover human remains in a gap in the cliff. The remains are a big find—six skeletons in all. Galloway is called in, along with Detective Chief Inspector Nelson, her married lover and the father of her newborn (things are complicated all around). The bones point back to WWII, the Home Guard, and a long-kept, incendiary secret. Moreover, the WWII vet who lets the police in on only the existence of the secret is found murdered. Solid characterization, believable forensic science, great atmosphere, and a mystery that stretches back decades all make this another winner from the talented Griffiths. --Connie Fletcher
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

Praise for the Ruth Galloway Mystery Series"Elly Griffiths draws us all the way back to prehistoric times…Highly atmospheric." —The New York Times Book Review"Galloway is an everywoman, smart, successful and a little bit unsure of herself. Readers will look forward to learning more about her." —USA Today "Ruth Galloway is a remarkable, delightful character…A must-read for fans of crime and mystery fiction." —Associated Press"Forensic archeologist and academic Ruth Galloway is a captivating amateur sleuth—an inspired creation. I identified with her insecurities and struggles, and cheered her on. " —Louise Penny, author of the bestselling Armand Gamache series"These books are must-reads." —Deborah Crombie, author of the Duncan Kincaid/Gemma James series"[Ruth Galloway’s] an uncommon, down-to-earth heroine whose acute insight, wry humor, and depth of feeling make her a thoroughly engaging companion." —Erin Hart, Agatha and Anthony Award nominated author of Haunted Ground and Lake of Sorrows"A wonderfully rich mixture of ancient and contemporary, superstition and rationality, with a cast of druids, dreamers and assorted tree-huggers as well as some thoroughly modern villains…A great series." —The Guardian"[An] excellent series…Skillful and engaging." —The Globe and Mail"Griffiths is one of England’s freshest mystery writers. Her novels combine a dramatic sense of place with a complicated mystery, and with each new installment, her character of Ruth Galloway becomes more complex and dynamic." —Curled Up with a Good Book"Griffiths does a lot to humanize forensic archaeology and serves up great dollops of historical details in her Ruth Galloway series…Griffiths is great at conveying the archaeologist’s passion for finds, forensic or historic." —Booklist, starred review"Griffiths is a true mystery writer." —Ann Arbor News

Top customer reviews

I have been very pleased with Elly Griffiths series regarding Archeologist Ruth Galloway. I so enjoyed the first two books that I pre-ordered this third book. I was not disappointed.

Griffiths has a wonderful way of developing her characters, holding their character traits through each book and actually building on each trait to make the characters even more inviting and personable as the series moves on.

The mystery itself this time is the find of six skeletal remains along a cliff side at Broughton. These six bodies are discovered by a team that is mapping the coastland and mapping the erosion that is happening. While they are working they find the six bodies which have been exposed because of the failure of part of the cliff and the erosion of the salt water waves against the cliffs.

It is obvious that the six bodies were meant to never be found, but that hasn't happened. Ruth Galloway and Chief Inspector Nelson will team up again to try and solve this mystery.

It is soon realized that the murders are fairly recent since all deaths happened as result of gun shot wounds and five of them appear to be execution style. Who are these murdered men? Who killed them? And why did they kill them?

Ruth is able to determine through carbon tests that the bodies are approximately 50 to 70 years old and that each man has German roots, to the same region in Germany.

As the story unfolds this was a small platoon of German soldiers who were trying to infiltrate England but were discovered by the Home Guard of Broughton Sea. But why were the men executed? That is still the pressing story.

As Galloway and Nelson dig into the story they discover two of the men of the Home Guard are still alive, but not for long. Each of the men dies within the same week. When Nelson has one body exhumed and autopsied it is determined the man was murdered.

Further a German Historian shows up and says he knows who the six men were and why they were there. But, he also is murdered. So, who is now murdering people and trying to keep this story a secret? What are they trying to hide? Or who are they trying to protect?

All the while we are also dealing with Ruth's new life with a young baby, Kate. How will she work and yet raise a child as a single parent.

All of these things plus more are woven together in a story that will keep your attention. I love the way that Elly Griffiths pulls things together. Ties in history as well as archeology and police work. She does a wonderful amount of research and it shows in the depth and realism of her stories. There is also enough tension to keep you on your toes and frankly, you will never guess who the murderer is until the end of the book.

One has to be impressed that Griffiths manages to come up with plots that will make it necessary for Ruth Galloway to become involved in solving mysteries. Since she's a forensic archaeologist, old bones have to be found and her expertise has to be needed before she can be invited in by the police. There's also frequently a current murder in conjunction with the bones that she manages to involve herself with as well. I find it necessary to find out about the old bones and what happened to them; and how the new murder connects to the old bones. Very engaging. One caveat. I don't see why Ruth always seems to be singled out by the bad guy and put in danger of death before the story can end. Maybe because it gives DCI Nelson a chance to rush in and save her? I'm also annoyed that the author didn't tell us what exactly happened to Nelson on the beach that caused him to have to have CPR from Clough and end up in the hospital. All we know is that he was hit in the back and knocked off the seawall into the water. Not a word about what hit him in the back. Inquiring minds want to know!

I can't say much more about the book that the 3 previous reviewers wrote

The book keeps your attention from the first to last page. I read it in one night, couldn't putit down.

As far as I know this is still only avail in UK, that's where I ordered from and had my book in 2 weeks, was surprisedhow fast it got to the states!

If you have not read any of Elly's books, start with the first one, The Crossing Places as this is a series and books are a continuation.

Elly is a great writer. These are not a traditional cozy but are not thrillers either. I'd call them a modern mystery with some suspense in parts of book - just enough to where you don't want to set the book down for 5 minutes.

Looking forward to the next one - I hope there will be many more to come in this series

In spite of the fact that it is written in the present tense, which I find particularly annoying, I thoroughly enjoy this series. The main characters are sufficiently quirky (without being abnormal) to make attractive friends, and their complicated ongoing emotional situation gives their professional interactions an interesting and unusual dimension. The writing is gracefully ironic and the behavior of the characters who come and go adds a piquant dimension, or rather several dimensions, to the basic plot paring. And then there's Cathbad, who deserves a review of his own.

We start out this book with the discovery of six skeletons unearthed after erosion eats away at the sea cliff. Ruth is able to determine that the six bodies are about 70 years old and originated from Germany.

From here we are on an adventure into WWII invasion plots against the English coast. Struggling with doubts about her fitness as a mother of a young baby, Ruth plows on getting involved in another murder mystery as elderly men start dying mysteriously. Following clues, she and Inspector Nelson ferret out the truth in an exciting conclusion.

The murderer comes as a surprise.

A subplot is that her friend from Bosnia, via the US now, visits and among other things casts further doubt on Ruth's ability to mother Kate properly.

A well written, steady paced story that will keep you reading past your bedtime! I am really looking forward to the next Ruth Galloway novel.